What do U.S. Bishops have to say on the issue of undocumented immigrants? “Undocumented immigrants present a special concern. Often their presence is considered criminal since they arrive without legal permission. Under the harshest view, undocumented people may be regarded as undeserving of rights or services. This is not the view of Catholic social teaching. The Catholic Church teaches that every person has basic human rights and is entitled to have basic human needs met—food, shelter, clothing, education, and health care. Undocumented persons are particularly vulnerable to exploitation by employers, and they are not able to complain because of fear of discovery and deportation. Current immigration policy that criminalizes the mere attempt to immigrate and imprisons immigrants who have committed no crime or who have already served a just sentence for a crime is immoral. In the Bible, God promises that our judgment will be based on our treatment of the most vulnerable. Before God we cannot exercise inhumane treatment of certain persons by claiming that their lack of legal status deprives them of rights given by the Creator.” Source: United States Catholic Conference of Bishops on Catholic Social Teaching on Immigration and the Movement of Peoples If questions?, contact Mary Factor, Mary Mother’s Peace and Justice Ministry.